Point Lepreau offline after turbine system pump problems

ThePoint Lepreau nuclear generating station is temporarily offline,after a problem with one of theturbine system pumps on the non-nuclear side over the weekend.

All safety systems functioned properly during the incident Saturday night and there was no impact on staff, the public, or the environment, NB Power officials said in a statement.

Repairs are underway and the plant is expected to be reconnected and power restored to 100 per cent later this week, Sean Granville,vice-president and chief nuclear officer, said in a statement.

Meanwhile, the northeastern energy market and Coleson Cove generating station will supply any additional power required by the provincial grid, he said.

Maintenance shutdown in May

The shutdown comes just one month before the plant is scheduled to undergo a 45-day maintenance outage.

Maintenance and inspection activities will take place on both the nuclear and conventional sides of the plant in early May.

Workers will also make several modifications to the station,related to compliance to the latest Canadian Standards Association fire standards, as well as implement improvements related to emergency preparedness that were identified by the nuclear industry following the accident at Fukushima.

Point Lepreau undergoes planned maintenance every two years.

There was another shutdown in October, however, to repair thestation's fourth steam valve.

The plant returned to service in November 2012 after undergoing a refurbishment that took 37 months longer than expected and cost $2.4 billion $1 billion more than anticipated.

Itis Atlantic Canada's only nuclear reactor.The 660-megawatt plant produces enough electricity to power more than 333,000 homes per year, officials have said.